Delaine Le Bas - Witch Hunt - seen here
We drove to Cardiff this evening for an opening event at Chapter Arts Centre. Delaine Le Bas' Witch Hunt exhibition was accompanied by a short performance by the artist and her compadres. We were accompanied by a house guest from London we have been trying to wean off London-centric thinking, she has been feeling jaundiced by the whole business of elitism and cliques; she so often feels like an outsider in her own world.
I have been really looking forward to this show, it appeared to have all the ingredients for an edgy, effecting experience. As a British Romany, Le Bas promised a show that would explore 'otherness', the power of language in the process of 'othering', the cultural ostracisation of the gypsy. I really wanted to like it but I have to admit that I was sincerely disappointed. There were a few interesting enough elements to the series of installed structures (transitional dwellings) and tableaux; some nice sewn work, some evocative figures. I remembered the Cameroon artist, Pascale Marthine Tayou, at the Venice Biennale last year - but the comparison did not fare well.
I have been really looking forward to this show, it appeared to have all the ingredients for an edgy, effecting experience. As a British Romany, Le Bas promised a show that would explore 'otherness', the power of language in the process of 'othering', the cultural ostracisation of the gypsy. I really wanted to like it but I have to admit that I was sincerely disappointed. There were a few interesting enough elements to the series of installed structures (transitional dwellings) and tableaux; some nice sewn work, some evocative figures. I remembered the Cameroon artist, Pascale Marthine Tayou, at the Venice Biennale last year - but the comparison did not fare well.
I was very suprised by the seeming naivety of the work. I am aware that the artist operates like an outsider artist, but it must be pointed out that she attended St Martins College of Art and cannot, with any authenticity, claim that ground. The political messages and imagery scrawled throughout the show seemed to me quite juvenile, and artless. The show was peppered with Mighty Boosh type skulls, which are perfectly placed in surreal comedy, but totally misplaced in this context. I am even more upset to say that I found the performance piece lacking in all subtlety, depth and maturity. I felt really uncomfortable with the whole thing, it actually reinforced the problematic stereotypes I wanted to see overcome. Being Romany is not enough in itself; take off that tag and how does it stand up as art? In that respect it felt dangerously close to cultural exploitation. I do not doubt the sincerity of the artist and her views in any way I should add, but bringing the work to a publically funded white wall gallery space brings particular baggage - it alters the contexts of the work, it's a very edgy conundrum. Jean Michel Basquiat wrestled these problems in the 1980's, but his work was visionary, it still stands apart in its extraordinary visual literacy.
On the issue of language, I felt very unsure about the inclusion of Welsh in the show. I'm an 'incomer', not a native Welsh speaker, I continue to learn the lanuage. We are so sensitised to language as an issue of inclusion and exclusion here; it is a troublingly deep and traumatic issue. The simplistic comparisons and connections made in the show were, for me, problematic. It's such a loaded issue, I nearly didn't mention it here - because I was born in England, because I live in Wales, because I'm not a fluent speaker....
This blog has been deliberately pitched with a positive slant on the work I see day to day. I'd generally rather not comment on work I don't like or respond to - it's tough out there for artists, curators and venues alike. In this instance I actually felt upset by the whole experience however. Chapter is a beacon, a fabulous cultural oasis; I felt a bit let down. The opening was attended by many people of note and high reputation from the Cardiff art scene. I chatted to a fellow visitor, a retired outreach teacher who had worked for 20 years with gypsies and Irish travellers in Cardiff, I don't think she felt at all connected to this experience, she said: "It's not really what I was expecting, to be honest I'm a bit confused". Our London friend said: "Same old same old..." meaning one can't escape the machinery of the art world.
I took my camera but was very pointedly told by the official photographer to refrain from using it (not very egalitarian chaps!), so I didn't - but I was assured that the whole event would be documented on my behalf for posterity...
